All of Araluen's Rangers
by radha24-Dusty's apprentice
Summary: Hi guys! This is my response to Hibernian Princess's second challenge! It involves Crowley getting on Halt's nerves, and all of them singing together in one of the newly appointed Commandant's crazy ideas . . . trust me, you don't want to miss it! R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello everyone! This is my response to Hibernian Princess's second challenge. It involves Halt . . . and Crowley . . . and singing! You don't want to miss it! **

**Disclaimer: I (sadly) do not own **_**Ranger's Apprentice**_** or any of the characters in it. I also do not own the song **_**Real in Rio.**_

The sun was out, falling on the dark canopy of trees and dappling the dark forest floor with its rays. If one looked very closely, one could almost see the lone figure of a man sitting on a horse. He was a Ranger, and he seemed to be waiting for something—or rather, some_one_. This particular Ranger may have used the alias of "Arratay" at times, but his real name was Halt.

Ranger Halt was looking forward to at least a few weeks of rest . . . if it could be called that. He had recently helped reinstate Prince Duncan on the throne, and through that, Baron Morgarath had been banished to the Mountains of Rain and Night. Not that he was really a Baron any more. A hint of a wry smile touched the Ranger's face. He didn't feel the slightest bit sorry for the banished criminal, though he knew the mountains were a cold, lifeless place. After all, Morgarath was treacherous and power-hungry. Halt was startled out of his reverie by a call from a familiar voice.

"Halt!" the sandy-haired figure was riding up the road rapidly, approaching Halt's position in the trees. "Halt!"

Halt groaned inwardly. So much for resting or anything of that nature. The recently appointed Commandant had that excited inflection in his voice that heralded the arrival of a new, "brilliant" idea. This was just wonderful. He toyed with the idea of ignoring Crowley, but unfortunately, Abelard had already nickered to Cropper in greeting. _"Traitor."_ Halt whispered to his horse as Crowley approached, but Abelard merely gave an amused neigh.

"Halt! I have something to tell you!" Crowley said, rather breathlessly.

"I can see that." Halt said dryly. "Why else would the Ranger Corps Commandant be riding along like a two-ton badger?"

Crowley glanced at his friend, irritation in his eyes. "As you so kindly mentioned, I am the _Commandant._ That warrants some respect." When he saw his friend's expression—with both eyebrows raised in mock surprise which made you think he was about to say something like "Oh-ho!"—he sighed. "Not that _you'd_ care much about that anyways."

"Exactly!" Halt exclaimed emphatically. "But now, before you forget your _glorious_ idea, what was it that you wanted to share with me?"

Ignoring his friend's tone, Crowley said loftily. "Well . . . I was speaking with some of the new recruits—"

"Would these be the ones who tried to bribe their way into the Corps?" Halt asked innocently.

"No . . ." Crowley said deliberately. "And you very well know that. As I was _saying_ some of the new recruits are more musically inclined, so—"

"Please don't tell me you've decided to make the Rangers into some kind of musical!"

Crowley looked at him in astonishment. "Why, that's true! How did you guess?"

"Trust me, it wasn't that hard. This sounds just like another one of your hare-brained schemes."

"_Excuse me?_ I'm your Commandant."

Halt rolled his eyes and muttered. "You've stressed that often enough." Then, he spoke up a bit louder. "But never mind that, I'm assuming you want me to sing?"

Crowley sighed, then said hesitantly. "No, Halt. Actually . . . we thought you could write it."

Halt couldn't believe his ears. "_Write_ it? Are you _mad_? Crowley, you _know _I don't do prose and poetry! How could you even—I mean, why would you even _contemplate_ the idea? . . . "

Halt was finally taking this seriously, a fact that greatly pleased Crowley. He let his friend continue the rant for a few more minutes, half-stunned that Halt was even _going through_ one. After all, Halt wasn't really a ranter. Finally, the Commandant cut in with a conciliatory tone "Look, Halt, I found this really good song, okay? All you have to do is change the words around a bit or something."

Halt could tell that his friend was hooked on this new idea. "Oh, all right." He grumbled. "Seeing as you're so _eager_ for this, I suppose I'll have to. But you have to promise me one thing."

"What's that?" Crowley asked suspiciously, remembering what _usually_ happened when Halt demanded something in return.

"Oh, nothing much." Halt said with a glint in his eyes. "Just that _I _get to decide who sings what. And no one argues with me."

"Sure, whatever, Halt!" Crowley said, getting back on Cropper, happy that he had succeeded in convincing his friend in the first place.

"And don't blame me when we become the laughingstock of all Araluen!" Halt called after the retreating figure.

…..

Halt sighed to himself. Today was the day that he would most probably die of embarrassment. Lovely. The Rangers had all gathered today to sing the song he had written. Crowley hadn't found fifty people yet, but there was still more than half of them present. But that wasn't what worried Halt. His _idiot_ of a friend had actually agreed to present this in front of King _Duncan_! Baron Arald, Battlemaster Rodney—they'd probably show up just to see how their friend made a fool of himself. As much as he wanted to, he knew he couldn't back out of it now. Crowley was counting on him.

He watched as Crowley stepped forward and bowed majestically. In the shadows of his cowl, Halt rolled his eyes. That was his friend, all right. So _excited _and _enthusiastic_ about everything—and becoming the leader of the Corps didn't help matters. There were times when he felt like he _should_ have accepted Crowely's offer to make him the Commandant. But every time, he turned himself down. Who was he kidding? He didn't want or need all the attention.

"Halt? Halt! It's time!" He heard Crowley's stage whisper to him.

"Oh, very well." He said, resigned. "On one . . . two . . . three!"

With that, they began. The first few verses were merely sung.

_**All of Araluen's Rangers**_

_**Do our most favorite things**_

_**We are the best at sticking together**_

_**That's why we love Gathering!**_

_**All so clear we can talk to,**_

_**Horses and enemies call**_

Here, some of the Rangers began miming actions.

_**Shoot at those targets, throw knives and spy-y**_

_**Show us the best you can do**_

_**Everyone here is an expert,**_

_**Get up and join in our group**_

_**Talk to a stranger, great thrills and danger**_

_**That's why you'll love the RAN—GER CO—ORPS **_

_**All by ourselves**_

They began to do a simple dance which involved mostly spinning, fancy-looking footwork, and strange hand movements. Hey, he hadn't had a lot of time to come up with this! They should be grateful.

_**You can't see, us coming **_

_**You can't find us anywhere else.**_

_**We're the RAN—GER CO—ORPS**_

_**Know something else?**_

_**You can't feel this happening **_

_**You must feel it all by yourself.**_

Now, it was time for the refrain again.

_**All of Araluen's Rangers**_

_**Do our most favorite things.**_

_**Moon and the stars, annoying Halt**_

_**That's why we—**_

"Cut!" Halt shouted angrily. "That's _not_ what I wrote, and I very well know it! Was it you, Bartell?"

He abruptly addressed the boy, who immediately turned red and answered quietly. "No . . . actually it was Crowley, sir."

"What is the meaning of this, Crowley? I did you a favor for you by writing this song! Is this your—" He stopped at the sound of laughter. The King, the Baron, and the Battlemaster were all bursting with amusement.

"You . . . " Arald gasped between breaths. "You _wrote _this, Halt? I never thought—I mean, I must admit, you didn't seem the type to . . . "

He trailed off as he saw Halt's expression. "Crowley." Halt said, his voice ominously quiet. "We're going to talk about this later, okay? But until then . . . it would be a shame to waste all this effort, wouldn't it?" 

The Commandant gulped. "Of—of course Halt. Whatever you say."

"Good."

Then, he stepped forward, as it was time for his solo. One look and everyone's amusement vanished without a trace. Halt took a deep breath, and readied himself. He was somewhat used to it, anyways. Hibernians were known for their love of music. In the background, the Rangers began to sway gently.

_**Loving our life of adventure**_

_**Everything's wild and free.**_

_**Never alone, 'cause we feel at home,**_

_**That's why we make up the Ran-ger Co-orps**_

_**All by ourselves**_

_**You can't see, us coming,**_

_**You can't find us anywhere else.**_

As he stepped back, Crowley stepped forward to sing his part.

_**Here everyone loves the silence,**_

_**With no one else but yourself.**_

_**Coffee and a cloak, what more could you want?**_

_**Everyone has fun in the Ran-ger Co-orps**_

_**Here's something else**_

_**You just feel us happening**_

_**You won't find it anywhere else.**_

The last four stanzas were repeated with the entire group. Numerous voices went too high at the last words. This made Halt want to shout at them and slam all of their heads together. Especially Crowley's. But he contented himself with the thought of it, because he was mildly pleased that it hadn't gone _too _bad. Besides . . .

He _was _a Ranger after all.

….

**So, did you like it? I thought it was at least **_**mildly**_ **amusing, and I hope you all felt the same way. Thanks for giving out such fun challenges, Hibernian Princess! :D**

**Press the blue button below this! You know you want to!**

**. . . Please . . .**


	2. A little discussion

**Thanks for this idea, Bralt!**

**A/N: Just so everyone knows, this addition doesn't really fit the genre of humor, but it is more like…friendship, I guess.**

**I do not own the song **_**Too Late to Apologize**_

**oOoOo**

Crowley gulped. He was seriously regretting the decision to change Halt's lyrics, as now his friend wanted to have a "discussion" with him. He didn't have to think much to guess what Halt had in mind. He thought of skipping this meeting, or sneaking up on Halt, or something else, but his heart wasn't in it. He knew he would just get in more trouble with the Ranger.

_Well, you made a mistake. You shouldn't have done it in the first place. _Cropper said to him, and the Commandant eyed his horse suspiciously, wondering if he was going mad because of his fear.

"I know, but it seemed funny at the time. He should realize it was just a joke."

_You know that attitude isn't going to work with him. Just admit it to him._

"But I can't do that! That would be like…like giving up!"

_You know you aren't being very reasonable right now. You're the Commandant._

"Which is why I can't just say it to him. It wouldn't be befitting, somehow."

"Talking to yourself, Crowley?" Halt's voice came to him, and he turned to find his friend smirking at him.

"I was not talking to myself. I was just…er…formulating my thoughts."

"Really." Halt stated, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, I was!" Crowley said, defensively. "And besides, don't you have anything better to talk about than doubting my sanity?"

"Actually, that is precisely the reason I am here. Because I doubt your sanity…specifically in regards to the recent incident."

"What are you talking about, Halt?" Crowley asked, innocently, knowing that it was a futile attempt.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about, Crowley. Don't try to deny it." Halt's tone shifted, turning cold.

"I…oh, very well, Halt. I apologize, okay? It truly was meant to be a joke, nothing else!"

"I'm _sure_ it was."

"I'm perfectly serious. Please…please forgive me, Halt. I really didn't mean any offense to you." Crowley said, quite sincerely.

"Should've thought of that earlier."

"Halt, please don't be like that! How many times do you want me to apologize?"

"Until I can tell that you mean it."

"What? What do you mean? I do mean it!"

"And that's why you're shouting at me, right?" Halt said, sarcastically.

Crowley decided to change his tactics. "I…you know, I always thought you were a reasonable person. That you were someone who was beyond being controlled by emotions. Perhaps I was wrong."

"You are in no place to accuse me at the moment, Mr. _Commandant._"

Crowley sighed in frustration. "What do you want from me, Halt?"

"Do you want to know what I feel like saying to you right now?"

Crowley was surprised by the sudden change of topic. "What?"

He was even more stunned when Halt began singing softly.

_I'm holding on your rope  
>Got me ten feet off the ground<br>And I'm hearing what you say  
>But I just can't make a sound<br>You tell me that you need me  
>Then you go and cut me down<br>But wait...  
>You tell me that you're sorry<br>Didn't think I'd turn around and say..._

_That it's too late to apologize, it's too late  
>I said it's too late to apologize, it's too late<em>

Before Halt could go on to the next line, Crowley forestalled him, a puzzled look on his face. "Halt…you've been singing a _lot_ lately. Entirely out of character for you. What is the matter?"

His friend sighed—a fact that only served to worry Crowley even more. "It's nothing, Crowley. Nothing you need to worry about, at least. It's just that…well, I miss Hibernia sometimes. And this place is so much different from there. I find it difficult to fit in at times, and then when someone goes and does something like _this_…needless to say, it doesn't exactly help matters."

The Commandant looked at his friend in astonishment. Halt was just…well, _Halt._ He wasn't supposed to get emotional. But he supposed that the Ranger was relatively young. It was understandable that he might be feeling the pangs of homesickness. "Halt…I'm sorry. I didn't even think of that."

Halt rolled his eyes, his old nature back. "You say that as if you think about other things."

Crowley sighed with relief. At least his friend was acting normal, now."I do think about things. I wouldn't be Commandant if I didn't. But Halt…what do you want me to do? How can I make it up to you?"

Halt smiled at him, but it was a smile without humor. "You know what, Crowley?"

"What?"

"Since you're so proud of being the newly appointed Commandant and all that, why don't you try to figure this one out yourself. Come up with how to make it up to me, or something. Do whatever _you_ want."

"_What?"_ Crowley asked, bursting with incredulity.

"You heard me."

"Well…well, ok, I guess." Crowley said, uneasily, still unsure about what Halt was getting at.

"Then it's settled." Halt said. It was a statement, not a question.

"Um…good bye, then."

Halt did not answer. However, if one had glanced at him carefully as Crowley turned away and got on Cropper, he/she would've seen a grin on the Ranger's face. Of course, no one did, and no one was close enough to hear his last comment as the Commandant rode away.

"Oh, Crowley. I wonder what he is going to do. I'm afraid I confused him terribly."

_Don't worry, Halt. _Abelard neighed and nudged his master's shoulder. _He'll come up with something good._

"I know, Abelard. That's what I'm afraid of."

**oOoOo**

**Well, unless anyone really wants to know what happens next, I think this story is over for now. Thanks for reading! I really appreciate it!**


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